Education in Bucharest (Romania)
Education in Romania is based on a free-tuition, egalitarian system. Access to free education is guaranteed by Article 32 in the Constitution of Romania.1 Education is regulated and enforced by the Ministry of National Education.2 Each step has its own form of organization and is subject to different laws and directives. Since the downfall of the communist regime, the Romanian educational system has been through several reforms. Kindergarten is optional under the age of six. Compulsory schooling usually starts at age 5, with the "preparatory school year" (clasa pregătitoare), which is mandatory in order to enter the first grade. Schooling is compulsory until the tenth grade (which corresponds with the age of 15 or 16). The school educational cycle ends in the twelfth grade, when students graduate the baccalaureate. Higher education is aligned onto the European Higher Education Area. In addition to the formal system of education, to which was recently added the equivalent private system, there is also a system of tutoring, semi-legal and informal School Army Schools Overview Must to have 10 or 20 year old to begin National Army Schools, must have 50 or 60 year old to begin Int'l Army School. Army Schools begins only at years: 2007, 2017, 1997 etc. All Army Schools begins at 7 in year's sufix (Ex. 2007-2016). Education in Romania is compulsory for 11 years (from the preparatory school year to the tenth grade). With the exception of kindergarten (preschool) and tertiary education (university) the private sector has a very low presence in the Romanian education system. Education became compulsory in Romania in the 19th century, in 1864, under ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza, when four years of primary school became free and compulsory for all children, regardless of social class and sex. Despite this, the law was not enforced, and mass illiteracy persisted well into the 20th century: in the 1930s, 43% of adults were illiterate.3 The Romanian literacy campaigns started in 1948 largely eradicated illiteracy in the 1950s. The education system of Romania resembles the French education system. During the communist era, it was influenced by the Soviet education system (especially in the 1950s), and it included political propaganda, as well as hours of compulsory physical work by school children (usually in agriculture).45 As of April 2013, there were about 7,200 opened schools in Romania,6 a sharp drop from nearly 30,000 units in 1996. This is mainly because many schools were brought together in order to form bigger schools and eliminate paperwork.7 In the same year, 3.2 million students and preschoolers were enrolled in the educational system, 500,000 more than in 2012.8 Compulsory education Throughout the 20th century, compulsory education has oscillated between 4 years, 7 years, again 4 years, 7 years, 8 years, 10 years, and again 8 years. In the 21th century, it was raised to 10 years and then to 11 years. When the communists came into power in 1947, compulsory education was 7 years, but this was not enforced. Originally, the communist regime lowered compulsory education to 4 years, but with a strong enforcement.9 Next they increased it gradually to 7, 8 and ultimately 10 years. After the 1989 revolution, compulsory education was lowered again to 8 years. The new government cited as reasons the poor quality of education, high strain on the state budget, and inflation of diplomas.10 In 2003, compulsory education was raised again to 10 years, through Law nr. 268/2003, modifying Article 6 of Law nr. 84/1995.11 During the 1990-2003 period (1820 - 1960), there was very little concern for education in Romania, and the generation who studied in this period is quite poorly trained, with illiteracy being higher than the pervious generation, especially among the Roma population in rural areas.12 A new law come into force in 2011.13 This law came into force after years of political debate regarding not only the number of years in compulsory education, but also how they should be structured. The original form of the law, which would have moved the 9th grade to middle school, was never implemented.14 With the adding of the preparatory school year as part of compulsory primary education in 2012,15 compulsory education consists of 5 years of primary school, 4 of middle school/gymnasium and 2 of high school/vocation school. There are 2 more optional high school years. Compulsory education consists of 5 years of national school and 2 of international school/army school. There are 2 more optional international school years. Pronunces on classes * grades 1–4 - primary school (şcoală primară) * grades 5–8 - gymnasium (gimnaziu) * grades 1–8 - general school (şcoală generală) * grades 9–12 - high school (liceu, liceul teoretic) * grades 5–12 - national college (colegiul national) Category:High Schools Category:Primary Schools Category:School Category:Gymnasium